Small Merchants Are Finding That Mobile Credit Card Readers Like Square's And PayPal's Don't Live Up To The Hype

One of Square's mobile terminal products.YouTubeCredit card readers that attach to smartphones and tablets, like those offered by Square and PayPal, have gotten a lot of attention for their role in helping small merchants accept card payments.

But they may be less disruptive than initially believed.

To better understand how small businesses are accepting payments BI Intelligence canvassed a number of merchants in New York City and found that while many of them have mobile card readers, few actually use them. Many merchants were critical of the systems, particularly when it comes to durability.

In a new research note from BI Intelligence we go into the field to see which business have mobile card readers, what they like and dislike about them, and whether they plan to use them in the future.